On The Run Again
by K900
Summary: Bounty Hunters are being killed off one by one by the outlaw Deuce Anderson and his henchman, Bruiser. Dr King Schultz flees to safety, to Boston, to meet up with Samantha Davison, a former bank robber he saved from a death sentence in Texas (see "Ain't A Gentlemanly Thing To Do"). As a lawman, can he trust the reformed outlaw?
1. Chapter 1

Austin, TX

Dr. King Schultz and Django ride out to the old Indian Pass to meet with fellow Bounty Hunter Granger Walton. He had sent them an urgent message that Deuce Anderson had murdered three of their bounty hunter colleagues to avoid capture.  
One had dynamite rigged to his front door. The other, had died from a lethal dose of arsenic in his morning coffee. And the last, had been found hanging dead in his barn. Granger said that they were all in danger and that it would be better if they banded together.

Dr King glanced at his pocket watch.  
—He should have been here three hours ago, he murmurs.  
He turns to Django.  
—Stay put here, will you? I'll ride out toward Empire to see why he's delayed.  
Django nodded.

Dr King rode towards the dark desolate landscape until he came upon the lifeless body of Granger Walton, hanging upside down from an old withered tree. A gunshot wound on his head. Pinned on his chest was a blood stained playing card, the deuce of diamonds.

…..

Boston, MA

In a little row of small brick buildings on Stuart St. a mailman knocks on the door of a ramshackle apartment.

—Miss Davison?  
the door opens to reveal a petite, dark haired woman.  
—Letter for you, miss. says the tall bearded man and hands her the envelope.  
Recognising the name on the letter, she smiles. She thanks the man and closes the door behind her.

She opens the letter with a knife and reads.

Dear Samantha,  
How is your new life as a law abiding citizen in Massachusetts? I've heard that you are gainfully employed in a textile factory on Warren St.  
I have not forgotten your request to look you up should I happen to be in town.

The truth is, I am in need of your help. An outlaw is killing off bounty hunters in Texas. I am in grave danger. It seems that Deuce Anderson is determined to kill us all to avoid capture. Seeing that he will never venture this far north, could you offer me temporary shelter as I make my way to Pennsylvania?

Texas has become to dangerous for me to work in, and have decided to accept and offer of employment to serve the court of Philadelphia.

If it isn't possible for you to receive me, I understand. I'm sure local enforcement can find me a place to stay. It's just that, it would be nice to see how you are doing.

I hope this letter finds you well and in good health.

Your friend,

Dr King

She closes the letter. How long she has wanted to hear from him. How she has longed to see him again. If only the circumstances were better, she sighed. The poor man is in danger.

A harsh knock is heard from outside her door. She stands, and sees her door knocked down by a large man with gold teeth. He whips out a well worn pistol and holds it up to her temple.

—Miss Davison, says the man, I have a proposition for you from a Mr Deuce Anderson. You might not know him yet, but you will very soon.

Austin Texas Jail

—letter for you, Doc! says the marshall. Handing a letter to Dr King, He sees it is a reply from Samantha in Boston. He tears open the letter impatiently. His eye falls on her feminine handwriting. It is calm and even. It reads:

Dr King Schultz,

How glad I am to hear from you. Although the circumstances are not entirely pleasant, do come to Boston and stay with me. Let me know when you arrive. I am so looking forward to seeing you again.

Respectfully yours,  
Ms. Samantha Davison

He closes the letter and smiles. 


	2. Chapter 2

Boston Central Terminal

Dr King's train arrives at Boston. He steps off the platform. The steam clears, and he sees Samantha waiting for him, half turned and looking the other way, prettier than ever.

—Sam?

She turns  
—Dr King, she says breathlessly, and kisses him lightly on the cheek.

—I can't believe it, you're here, she says.  
—Neither can I, honestly. he smiles. Last time we were together we were surrounded by a band of federal marshals armed to the teeth.  
—Yes, we were. She blushes, remembering their long kiss.

He playfully offers her his arm.  
—So, Miss Davison, won't you show me around your fair city?

…..

That evening, they walk slowly to her place on Stuart street. He sees that it is a very humble dwelling.

—Factory work isn't as profitable as robbing banks, I admit, but it's an honest living, she says.  
— I'm glad you made the change, Sam. I don't think a life on the run suits you.  
—No, it does not.  
—Are you happy?  
—I am.

She walks up to her front door.  
—Well, this is it. My place.  
Dr King, seeing that the street is deserted, plants a kiss on her lips. She reciprocates, wrapping her arms arms round his neck. She breaks their kiss to open the door. He drops his small suitcase and carries on kissing her inside her apartment, until he realises she has stopped kissing him. There's fear in her eyes.  
—What's wrong? he asks.  
He turns, and sees Deuce Anderson with his henchman, the gold toothed Bruiser standing before them in the semi darkness. Before King can draw his pistol, Bruiser hits him squarely on the jaw, knocking him out cold.


	3. Chapter 3

Warehouse somewhere in Boston

Cold water hits Dr King's face. He wakes immediately in a dark and severe interior. He's sitting in a chair, the ropes cutting into his wrists. He looks around.

Standing before him is Deuce Anderson, not too far behind is Bruiser, his gold teeth glittering in the dark.

—So, you thought you could escape us, did you? says Deuce.  
—How did you know I was in boston?  
—I have friends who work in the Texas postal service, said Deuce. You'd be surprised how easily an ex-con can get employment there. Once you posted her a letter, it was just a matter of paying her a visit.  
—And Sam? Is she part of your gang?  
A look of amusement came over Deuce.  
—You really feel betrayed, don't you? Well, let's say I had something she wanted, and she had you to give to me.  
Dr King fell silent. He had been used. He had given her a new life in Boston, freed her from a death sentence and was repaid with betrayal. I swear, if I live to find her again, I will hurt her, he thought bitterly.

—So, Dr King, I've been looking forward to ending your life. You took my most capable men to the hangman, and now you're going to pay.  
He held up two ominous looking copper clamps with serrated edges. Each contact made a crackling noise, sending sparks into the air.

The water that drenched his clothes and pooled around his ankles, made him tremble. He feared what was to come.

…

Deuce kicks Dr Schultz in the stomach as he lays on the floor. He doesn't respond.  
—Bastard must have passed out. Must have a weak heart. It's time to finish you off, bounty hunter.  
Deuce raises the voltage, and before Deuce could shock him again, Dr Schultz knocks him out cold.

While Deuce is still out, dr king struggles to stand. He finds Deuces' pistol on the table. The door opens and it is Bruiser. Before Bruiser's eyes can adjust to the dark , he is shot by Dr King. But the man escapes out into the darkness. Behind King, Deuce Anderson begins to stir and struggles to draw his switchblade from his jacket, Dr King steps on his wrist and aims his gun carefully at his chest.

—As an official of the state of Texas, I am authorised to capture you, dead or alive, for the crime of murder and armed robbery.  
He shoots.

Sensing a loss of blood, he collapses to the floor. A boston policeman hears the gunshots and appears at the open doorway. He sees the Deuce's corpse and the injured Dr King, he runs frantically to call for help.

…


	4. Chapter 4

Boston Hospital

Dr Schultz wakes in the hospital. The local police interview him about his capture. The inspector, a young detective, asks him questions.

—How did you end up in his warehouse?  
—I was walking down Stuart St, when he surprised me with his man, Bruiser, who knocked me out cold.  
Deftly he makes no mention of Samantha. I'll deal with her myself. He is surprised by this new side of him. This coldness, this thirst for revenge. The truth is, he'd never been deceived by a woman before, not like this. Have I crossed the line? I don't care. I don't care.  
—Have you found Bruiser, his henchman? Schultz asks.  
—We have not. But policemen are searching the area.  
The doctor enters and declares that although Dr King wasn't irreparably harmed by the electrocution, he recommends that he stay the night.

They wrap up the interview and with that, they bid him a good recovery.

Stuart st. Samantha's apartment

Fearing for her life, Samantha frantically packs up her things. Hot tears stream down her face when she thinks of what fate awaits Dr King Schultz. She stoops from underneath her table and fishes out a well hidden Colt revolver she's kept from her bank robbing days. She kept the bullets hidden above a tall bookcase in a small ceramic jar. She takes out her booty from an old heist, a faded olive coloured money bag from the Texas national bank. In it, is a measly $200, but it'll have to do.

She feels a cold draft behind her. A realisation hits her, the back door is open.  
In an instant, a chloroform soaked kerchief descends onto her face from behind, she tries to get free, but it is too late.

She wakes, lying on the floor, her ankles and wrists bound. Above her is Dr King Schultz. He glares coldly at her and picks up a bowie knife from a nearby table and positions it at her throat.

—Please, no, she pleads. But his demeanour is unchanged.  
—I regret that I spared your life in Texas. I should have let you hang, he says. Tears well up in her eyes.

He holds her head down to the floor to keep it still, and sinks the knife edge against her soft neck.  
—Stay still and it'll be over quick.  
She sobs softly to herself. The kind Dr King she knew in Texas had become a faint memory.

A knock is heard is from outside. A little voice says:  
—Mama, I'm home.

He stops. —You, have a child?  
—It's my little boy, Arthur. King, please, don't hurt him.

—Who's child is he? Have you been selling yourself?  
She can see the disgust in his eyes.

—No. My first year here I fell in love and got pregnant. When the father found out he left me. King, I didn't want to betray you. But Deuce came and took Arthur and threatened to hurt him if I didn't cooperate. I had no choice. Promise me, you'll send him to my sister out west. I don't want him to end up in a workhouse. He won't survive a year there. Promise me you'll do this. It's all I ask.

Here she is, about to die, and all she can think about is her boy.  
None of this would have happened to her if he hadn't posted her a letter.  
What's a mother to do, faced with such a choice?

—Why didn't you tell me? he asked  
—Deuce said he'd kill Arthur if said anything to you.

He sees his reflection in a small mirror. He sees a wild man.  
What have I become? A few seconds more and I would have made that child an orphan.

—I'm sorry Anderson did this to you. I understand now, he says.  
And cuts her bonds free.

He gets up to leave and opens the door to let Arthur in. A little, frail boy enters, he sees a bearded stranger holding a big knife, and his mother on the floor with tears in her eyes. He knows something is wrong and runs into her arms.

Dr Schultz backs away slowly and leaves by the back door,  
—I'm sorry Sam, he mutters, shutting the door behind him.

Inside, she holds her child, relieved at being spared, happy that her boy is safe and sound, yet filled with sadness because King could never love her again. 


	5. Chapter 5

A darkened alleyway in Boston. Midnight

Dr King, after downing a stiff drink, leaves the Green Dragon Tavern. With the Deuce dead, there was no reason to stay in Massachusetts, nor to go on to Philadelphia. He makes his way to an inn that he is staying in, through the Boston Commons, facing the state capitol.

The rustling of the trees and the sleeping city puts him in a pensive mood.  
Her face flashes in his mind, that moment when she holds her little boy close to her.  
Poor girl.

He opens the door to his room and closes the door behind him and collapses into bed, when he hears a footstep behind him. Immediately a cord is strung in front of his face and tightens around his neck. He is being garrotted. He is raised up from the bed and and Bruiser whispers in his ear:  
—Thought you'd get away?  
Bruiser tightens the cord and King finds himself staring at the ceiling, unable to reach for his revolver which Bruiser deftly unholsters and throws on the ground. He tries frantically to put his fingers underneath the cord, but its useless. He struggles against the man, moving from side to side, furniture is overturned around them, a vase breaks, a side table falls, the door busts open when they thrash against it.

Bruiser tightens the garrotte, pressing King's face against the wall. King is starting to lose consciousness when unexpectedly, the garrotte loosens and king sinks against the wall and lies on the floor. He struggles to turn to look behind him. He sees Bruiser, his eyes wide open with a look of surprise, he falls to the floor with a knife in the back to reveal Sam standing behind him. She has a terrified look on her face and flees the apartment, leaving the door behind open.

How did she know he was staying here? Maybe she'd asked after him at the police station, or the hospital…

King passes out.

When he wakes, he sees a frightened innkeeper, and Django, who has found him.  
—You must have 9 lives, doc. Who wiped out the Bruiser?  
—Sam, he said with a hoarse voice.  
—The bank robber? That little lady has grit.  
—You must see to it that she's safe. She has an apartment on stuart street. She has a child with her. 18 Stuart. Go now.  
The innkeeper says that the police are on their way. King reaches into his briefcase and produces the handbill for Bruiser, explaining that he is wanted for murder and robbery.

After the police arrive, Django tells him  
—The apartment's deserted. Valuables are taken, she and and her boy must have skipped town. Perhaps to escape Bruiser's known associates.

—She's on the run again, says King.  
 _And it's all on my account._


End file.
